Chapter Thirty-Two
It was partly cloudy with a chance of clearing Darby’s name. I know, lame. The whole sleuthing gig was going to my head. But I could feel it in my bones. Today we’d dig up some clue to change the direction of Malone’s investigation. I still needed to call him.
To be honest, there was never a time I’d thought I’d step foot in Jo’s business. In fact, I hadn’t known she even worked out of an office building. I just assumed she’d worked out of her home. Imagine my shock to learn she had an office suite right off Forrest. It was so professional of her. So unexpected.
Our little trio squeezed through the door, Fluffy leading the way. This wasn’t her first visit. She wasn’t tense or showing the need to sniff around and investigate. Unlike me.
Jo stomped down the hallway with a supersized mug in her hand. “What do you want?” she barked.
I felt Darby flinch.
I couldn’t stop looking at Jo’s hair. Somehow it managed to be a rats nest and stringy simultaneously. It looked horrible. Actually, she looked bad from head to toe. There were dark circles under her eyes, and her shoulders sagged. Her whole demeanor was broken. Blackmailing people must be tiring work. Maybe Malone had already paid her a visit.
I pulled myself together. “We want a reading. Or whatever you call it.”
“Bull.” Her foghorn voice belted out the one syllable word. She pointed at Fluffy. “You brought the dog. This is a test.”
Apparently we were diving right in. “You can look at it that way if you want. But if you can convince me you’re legit, what better advertisement is there?”
“I don’t do seances.” She tilted her chin, daring me to challenge her.
“Neither do I.” I shot her my beauty pageant smile.
She rolled her eyes, disgusted.
Hey, that smile had won me a crown or two back in the day.
Jo brushed some crumbs off the front of her black t-shirt. “Fine. But you have to do what I tell you.”
I looked at Darby, and she nodded. “Agreed,” I said. Okay, I crossed my fingers behind my back.
We headed down the hallway to her miniature Dr. Phil office. A very long uninviting couch, a couple of overstuffed chairs, end tables. And boxes and boxes of tissues stashed within reach throughout the room. A staple for when you tell your clients they’re going to die.
“Sit,” Jo ordered.
Fluffy immediately sat on my foot. “Not you, girl.” I patted her head.
“Do we take the couch or chairs?” Darby asked.
“Whatever you’re comfortable with,” Jo replied with a vague wave of her hand.
Darby looked uneasy and headed straight for the couch. I followed her lead. It wasn’t my first choice, but hopefully we weren’t staying long. Lord have mercy, it was like sitting on plywood. I’d better not have any splinters in my butt by the time we left.
Fluffy paraded over and inched herself up against Darby. I shot a I-see-how-it-is glare at Snob Dog. I swear she smiled back.
Jo warily settled on a chair. She let out a pent up breath, closed her eyes and rolled her shoulders a couple of times.
“Why were you blackmailing Mona?” I asked.
She sighed and shot me a death glare with one eye open. “You’re not very good at this. You agreed.”
I shrugged. “I crossed my fingers.”
Jo opened both eyes. She looked tired, almost as if I’d finally broken her lying spirit. I almost felt sorry for her. Almost.
“I told you I didn’t kill Mona. I wasn’t blackmailing her, either. Tricia and Cliff were having an affair.” She continued to stick to the same story.
“That just doesn’t make sense,” Darby insisted, stroking Fluffy’s head, which was now resting adoringly on Darby’s lap. The sweet girl from Nebraska refused to believe a good friend would commit the ultimate betrayal. Man, I loved her spunk.
“Look, Jo. I know you’re hiding something. What is it? Where were you the night Mona died?” I asked.
“I was here. Alone.”
“No one’s going to believe you. Spill it. What are you hiding?” I said.
She rubbed her hands on her jeans. “Mona fired me,” she finally admitted.
“I know.” Her head shot up, shock clearly stamped on her face. “Tricia told me. Do you want to fill me in on the bathroom argument yet?”
“Why, it sounds like Tricia’s already talked enough for the both of us.”
“She’s going to file a police report. She claims you accosted her in the parking lot last night and are blackmailing her.”
Jo swore. Darby covered Fluffy’s ears.
“She is such a blabbermouth,” Jo complained.
“So it’s true?” Darby asked, wide-eyed.
Jo sat forward, nostrils flaring. “No, it’s not true. I’m not the one who was blackmailing Mona,” she insisted.
No, that was Cliff. The cad boasted about it at breakfast. “But you admit to blackmailing Tricia?”
She looked at Fluffy. “I told you. She was having an affair with Cliff.”
I shook my head. “Not according to Cliff. I believe him.”
“You’ve talked to Cliff?” Jo looked shaken. She drummed her finger on the arms of the chair.
I shifted my weight, not exactly comfortable with the wild look developing in Jo’s eyes. “A little over an hour ago. He was full of info.”
Jo sprang from the chair. Darby gasped and laid a protective hand on Fluffy.
“I’ll be right back,” Jo said with a forced smile. “I just remembered I didn’t set the phones to forward to voicemail.” She raced out of the office like a bat from you know where.
I don’t know who she thought she was fooling, but it didn’t take a medium or a psychic to know she was ducking out. I could hear the back door creaking as she tried to quietly and slowly make her escape.
“She’s running.” I shouted.
Fluffy barked and charged for the door.
Chapter Thirty-Three
I grabbed Darby, she grabbed Fluffy, and we rushed out the front door. We hid behind a huge black Caddy SUV parked on the street and waited for our escapee. Sure enough, Jo charged out of the backyard without a backwards glance in our direction, wearing dark sunglasses and a leather vest over her t-shirt.
Game on, sister.
The three of us followed up the busy street, weaving around people when needed, sometimes hiding behind them, not wanting to give away our presence. It may not be prime tourist season, but people flocked to Laguna year round.
Jo bobbed around a young couple walking their Great Dane. She glanced over her shoulder. I tried to hide behind the tree, but it was too late, she’d spotted us. Crapola.
Jo picked up speed and was now almost running. I wish I knew where she was running to.
“She did it. She killed Mona.” Darby sounded out of breath. From the realization we knew who killed her mother or from the spontaneous cardio exercise, I couldn’t tell. I was concentrating on not letting Jo out my sight as we got closer to PCH.
Once Jo reached the corner she cut left. I couldn’t see her. Suddenly, there was an ear-piercing scream mixed with the blare of a bus horn.
“No, no, no.” I yelled.
